Singapore Preschoolers' Play in Relation to Social Class, Sex, and Setting.

Honig, Alice S.; Lim, Swee Eng

Noting that play varies as a function of culture, gender, setting, and parent or teacher valuing, a study examined the play of children in Singapore. Subjects were 56 middle- and working-class preschoolers between the ages of 46 and 72 months who were videotaped at play in their homes and in the child care centers that they attended and rated on the Parten/Piaget and Smilansky play scales. The children's mothers completed a 20-item questionnaire on their attitude towards play and were assessed as to socioeconomic status by the Hollingshead 4-factor index. It was found that parallel play and functional play occurred more at home, whereas associative and cooperative play occurred more in the child care centers. Girls' play scores were higher than boys on the Smilansky but not the Parten/Piaget play scales. The lack of socioeconomic status differences and the relative mildness of sex differences reflects a strong movement toward modernity in Singapore families. (MDM)